


Someday My Prince Will Come

by CommanderBayban



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (1963)
Genre: Disney, Disney World & Disneyland, F/M, Gen, Orchestra, Slow Dancing, Waltzing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-30
Updated: 2020-10-30
Packaged: 2021-03-09 04:47:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,797
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27288895
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CommanderBayban/pseuds/CommanderBayban
Summary: After a long day at Magic Kingdom, the Doctor and Peri visit the Grand Floridian Resort to unwind, where she realises that maybe her Prince Charming isn't too far away after all.
Relationships: Peri Brown & Sixth Doctor, Peri Brown/Sixth Doctor
Comments: 4
Kudos: 5





	Someday My Prince Will Come

“Stay there, I’ll be right back!” the Doctor said, leaving Peri to sit and _tap-tap_ her feet as she peoplewatched in the Grand Floridian lobby. Swarms of children of all ages marvelled at the 14-feet tall, handmade gingerbread house that doubled as a sweets shop; the subtle aromas of cinnamon and peppermint wafting through the air were just enough to whet anyone’s palate. According to the sign, it took 400 hours to bake and 160 hours to decorate! Even with the Doctor having all the time in the world at his disposal, even _he_ wouldn’t be able to manage that! Only last week when making tiramisu together did he end up abandoning ship ten minutes through, leaving her to labour over it all. And, to no one’s surprise, he magically reappeared just when the cake was all said and done to ask if _“she needed any help”_.

Oh, she should’ve harnessed her inner Red Hen…

Behind the gingerbread house there was a fir tree that overlooked the highest floor's balcony, decorated to the very tip-top with ornaments, ribbons, and twinkling fairy lights; and throughout the entire hotel there were festive holiday decorations to make the Grand even more resplendent. Off to the far side of the lobby was a small orchestra accompanied by a female vocalist who performed classic Disney songs interspersed with new favourites, providing the perfect soundtrack to the Victorian atmosphere.

A little girl no older than eight broke free from her father’s grasp, darting across the room until she was only a few feet away from Peri. She sauntered up the rest of the way, her hands fidgeting in front of her and her eyes widened.

“Are you a princess?” she mumbled.

Peri glanced down at her attire: a cream, floor-length dress with gold patterning near the trim was overlaid with a bright yellow spencer jacket accented with pink buttons and lining. It was a rather regal outfit, but after trudging through hordes of guests in the Magic Kingdom all evening...she felt more like a nap and a cold bath.

She giggled, “No, I’m just—”

“Indeed she is!” The Doctor declared, “And doesn’t she look _grand_?”

The little girl’s face brightened at both the reply and the quirky-looking man with the pleased grin who had leaped into the frame. Peri’s cheeks began to flush lightly with crimson as she averted her eyes towards the floor.

“She’s beautiful!” the girl chirped, ”One day I want to be a princess too!”

“You already are, sweetie,” Peri replied, her voice dripping in the same saccharine tone as the princesses who strolled through Main Street, “You were _born_ a princess.”

“Really?!”

Peri nodded.

“And—and will I have a prince, too, just like him!?” She pointed at the Doctor who now had a smug expression spread across his face. Peri tried her hardest not to roll her eyes or give some smart remark to the child, so she clicked her teeth and simply said… _”Maybe!”_

The girl squealed and ran off to her family, jumping and pointing at her new friends as she relayed the details of her very short conversation. The father ruffled her hair and waved back at the princess and her consort, who in return gave their own royal salutes.

“Nobody but a princess could be so delicate,”

“Have you noticed, Doctor, that everywhere we go someone thinks we’re a couple?” Peri said, slightly miffed.

“Do they?” He took a seat beside her, “Hm, perhaps something can be said for that…”

She raised a brow, “What? That we should get married?”

“ _That we make a very excellent team,”_ he corrected.

The corners of her lips turned upwards as she looked up at him, “...Yeah, we do, don’t we?”

The Doctor wrapped his arm around Peri, pulling her in close, “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

To the other hotel guests, the sight of two colourful people locked in embrace certainly didn’t read as _‘two strangers’,_ but if the Doctor didn’t mind then Peri didn’t see a reason to either. So they sat comfortably together listening to the soft music drift through the air and giving their weary feet a chance to rest.

“I can see why you picked this resort, Doctor,” Peri sighed, “Even though it comes across as stuffy, it has a lot of charm. I feel like I should be getting ready for the ball!”

“I’m glad you agree! It’s a truly marvellous flagship resort. In fact, it was I who lobbied for the construction of a seaside Victorian retreat in the first place.”

She laughed through her nose, “Yeah, I’m sure you did! Is there anything you haven’t done?”

The orchestra's song came to a close and there was a small lull as they shuffled their sheet music to the next piece. In the interim, the Doctor rose to his feet and adjusted his necktie as though prepared to meet Walt Disney in the flesh. Peri cleared her throat,

“Uh, Doctor, I thought we were taking it easy for the rest of the night?”

Just then the soft, tender notes of a flute were soon joined by the rich harmonies of the string section. As the female vocalist began to sing the opening lines of the song, the aforementioned instruments hushed to make way for the flowing introduction of a baby grand piano and the gentle rhythm of percussion.

“ _When you wish upon a star…,”_ Peri sang to herself, “Oh, I love this song! I—”

“In that case—,” Her attention was drawn towards the Doctor who had bowed slightly in front of her. With one arm folded behind his back, he extended his other hand as an offering, “May I have this dance?” He purred, gazing into her eyes.

Peri’s heart fluttered and, as much as she tried to, she couldn’t suppress the surprise that overtook her countenance. She could feel herself becoming warm and darted her eyes to each side of him, wondering if anyone else was seeing what looked to be a proposal right in the middle of a hotel lobby. Obviously he wasn’t—there was no ring—but…

Peri looked back at the Doctor, whose face was gentle yet passionate. His eyes pierced into hers with little Cupid’s arrows, making her cheeks flush with a light rosy hue. Without a second thought, she slipped her hand into his.

“B—but I don’t know how…”

“ _Nihil desperandum_ , my dear Peri,” he asserted, holding up their hands, “For I will be your guide.”

Despite the full house, the path to the dance floor was cleared of all obstacles like a crowd parting to make way for royalty's first dance of the night.

When they stepped onto the polished marble floor, the Doctor placed his hand at the centre of Peri’s waist and she rested a hand upon his arm. The waltz was only slightly modified to make up for Peri’s inexperience, but she soon caught on and began to add her own flourishes. Together they were like two delicate tops whose colours coalesced with each spin, catching the attention of all who were in the vicinity. Their feet barely touched the ground as they moved in time to the music and their eyes never once separated from one another's.

“I knew you were a highly capable girl,” he grinned, dipping her.

“I have a capable teacher,” she responded with a smirk.

In the corner of her eye she saw the little girl from earlier, watching them intently from the sidelines. Peri could almost sense the girl’s baited breath as she recalled their conversation. ”You were born a princess”—a sentence that was almost hypocritical for her to say. Never in her life did she think of herself as a princess or a queen or any other kind of royal highness. If she had to live in the palace, she’d play the part of the dejected chambermaid who wishes she was of status while at the same time deriding those with it.

No...she wasn’t that either. She was more the type to play herself on the stage of life. “I’m Perpugilliam Brown, botany student and classic literature fanatic!” she’d declare. “...And a girl who’s destined to have terrible relationships with terrible men. Kissing toads; that's my specialty!"

But tonight, none of that felt true.

Unconsciously, Peri intertwined her fingers with the Doctor’s and rested her head against his chest; the rhythmic double patter of his hearts was calming—entrancing, even—and she let herself fall completely under his spell.

She was fooling herself, she knew it. Turlough may have rescued her from the sea, but the Doctor, in his own special way, saved her life. Despite all they had been through, she could say with conviction that he loved her. _Cared_ for her... Heck, 'Curious' George would have never been caught dancing in public with his two left feet! And Chuck, he could hardly keep his wandering eye on her. And Davey...

Peri squeezed the Doctor's hand to rid herself of such horrid memories. This wasn't the time for brooding.

Yes, toads may have bounced across the pages of her past, but the Doctor...he wasn't a toad. He was more like a—. Oh, there were many things she wanted to tell to him, but the right words had all but escaped her.

_Fate is kind, she brings to those who love..._

The Doctor took note of Peri’s change in choreography and slowed down his tempo. Such close contact between dancers would be considered vulgar back in the days of the Bourbons and the Romanovs, but seasons change and he was feeling awfully warm now. But it was the kind of warmth one longed for; that made one feel grounded. Having Peri feel his every emotion without having to do so much as open an eye was sobering. Perhaps she could make sense of it all better than he could.

_The sweet fulfillment of, their secret longing..._

Over the course of the piece, dozens upon dozens of guests turned from the static holiday decor to the dynamic dancing spectacle. Their minds and hearts reacted to the sight, with some guests imagining the duet being between themselves and a loved one, while others wished upon a star that one day they'd find a willing and able dance partner. Children with bright eyes and bushy tails looked upon the ‘Princess’ and her ‘Prince Charming’, realising that magic truly did lay behind every corner in the World.

_When you wish upon a star..._

But for the Doctor and Peri, as energy radiated from one body to the other, as two became one, nothing else mattered but the both of them. They danced like no one was watching and, for those few minutes, they felt like the only two people in the universe.


End file.
